Bamboo features prominently in this dish. I love the balance of the sweetness of the bamboo with the garlic and onion. And, of course, the bamboo also adds a wonderful crunch. If you cannot get fresh bamboo, vacuum-packaged bamboo is available in most Asian supermarkets. You will only need to blanch this bamboo for about ten minutes before using it.

Ingredients

Quantity

Ingredient

200g

fresh bamboo

vegetable oil, for frying

2

garlic cloves, chopped

150g

pork loin, cut into 1 cm strips

150g

raw prawns, shelled and deveined, tails left intact

4

spring onions, sliced

1 tablespoon

fish sauce

3 tablespoons

roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped

1/2 teaspoon

freshly ground black pepper

2

sesame rice crackers

Method

Put the bamboo in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45–60 minutes, or until tender. Drain and when cool enough to handle, peel and cut the bamboo across the grain into 5 cm batons.

Heat a little oil in a wok over medium heat and fry the garlic for 1–2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the pork and cook for 1–2 minutes, keeping the ingredients moving to avoid burning the garlic. Add the prawns and cook for a further 2 minutes, or until they change colour. Add the bamboo, spring onions and fish sauce and toss to just combine. Add the peanuts, sesame seeds and pepper. Give a final toss to ensure all ingredients are well combined, then transfer to a serving platter.

To eat, break off a piece of rice cracker and top with the stir-fried bamboo mixture.